Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

These scrumptious and chewy Oatmeal Raisin cookies are darn near perfect. They are crispy on the outside, and soft and chewy on the inside, with just the right balance of oats and raisins. 

My family loves these cookies, as do my daughter’s in-laws. You will love them as much as my cowboy cookies, molasses cookies, and almond joy cookies.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

See the complete list of ingredients on the recipe card below.

• Raisins: You can use either regular (black) or golden raisins.
• Butter: Unsalted or salted. If using salted butter, cut the amount down to ¼ teaspoon.
• Vanilla extract: Use the pure stuff, please.
• Rolled oats: Use old-fashioned rolled oats, not quick oats, for chewy cookies.

How To Make Oatmeal Cookies

This is a summary version; for the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please refer to the recipe card below.

1. Next, in a small bowl, combine the raisins and enough hot water to cover them.  Let them plump up for about 15 minutes.  Drain the raisins and dry them well with paper towels.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and salt.
3. Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter with the granulated and brown sugar. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until combined.
4. Turn the mixer to low (or stir) and add the dry ingredients, mixing until combined. Stir in the raisins and oats.
5. Using a 1 1/2 tablespoon scoop, roll the cookie dough into balls and place on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet with 2 inches of space between the cookie dough balls.
6. Bake the cookies until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks.

Preparation Tips

• Remove the butter and eggs from the fridge about 40 minutes in advance so the butter softens and the eggs come to room temperature.
• For plump, juicy raisins, soak them in hot water for 15 minutes.  Drain and dry well with paper towels.
• For optimum results, bake one sheet of cookies at a time. Use multiple cookie sheets, or let the single sheet cool before adding more dough balls, as a warm sheet can cause the cookies to spread too quickly.
• Last but not least, and perhaps the most important tip of all. Bake a few cookies off on a test run. If they spread too fast, refrigerate the dough for 1-2 hours and test again. If they do not spread enough, gently press the rounded spoonfuls of dough down with the palm of your hand and test again.

To freeze for baking at a later date, place the dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving a little space between them so they don’t freeze together. Put the sheet on a level surface in the freezer. Once fully frozen, transfer the frozen dough balls to a freezer zipper bag and freeze for up to 2 months.

Anytime you want fresh-baked cookies, take out as many as you’d like to bake and place them on a parchment-covered baking sheet, leaving a couple of inches between them. Let them thaw a little bit while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then bake for 11-13 minutes or until lightly browned. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes before moving them to wire racks.

More Cookie Recipes

Chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

A soft and chewy Oatmeal Raisin Cookie with the perfect ratio of oats and raisins. Bake and freeze or freeze the cookie dough balls for baking fresh Oatmeal Raisin cookies anytime. 

5 from 18 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: cookies, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Servings: 30

Calories: 149kcal

Author: Beth Pierce

Ingredients

• 1 cup raisins
• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup butter softened
• ⅔ cup granulated sugar
• ⅔ cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs room temperature
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups rolled oats

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
• In a small bowl, combine the raisins and enough hot water to cover them.  Let them plump up for about 15 minutes.  Drain the raisins and dry them well with paper towels.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and salt.
• Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl and beater down as needed. 
• Turn the mixer to low (or stir) and add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients mixing until combined. Stir in the raisins and oats.
• Using a 1½ tablespoon scoop, roll the cookie dough into balls and place them on the prepared baking sheet with 2 inches of space between the cookie dough balls. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned.  Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to finish cool.

Notes

• Store baked cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days. 
• Freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw the frozen cookies in an airtight container on the counter.

Nutrition

Calories: 149kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 119mg | Potassium: 89mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 158IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg

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